U.S. patent application number 13/006582 was filed with the patent office on 2011-07-21 for refrigerated cabinet with door assembly.
This patent application is currently assigned to REMIS Gesellschaft fuer Entwicklung und Vertrieb technischer Elemente mbH. Invention is credited to Erik Moeller.
Application Number | 20110175509 13/006582 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 43805675 |
Filed Date | 2011-07-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110175509 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Moeller; Erik |
July 21, 2011 |
REFRIGERATED CABINET WITH DOOR ASSEMBLY
Abstract
A refrigerated cabinet includes a door assembly for closing a
cooling chamber. The door assembly includes a door supported by
pivot bearings being configured to pivot about a vertical axis
between a closed position and an opened position. Rails arranged
substantially parallel to a side wall of the refrigerated cabinet
are configured to displaceably support the pivot bearings of the
door. The door is displaceable in the rails between a use position
in front of the cooling chamber, in which the door is pivotable
between the opened position and the closed position, and a parking
position next to the cooling chamber, in which the door cannot be
pivoted.
Inventors: |
Moeller; Erik; (Koeln,
DE) |
Assignee: |
REMIS Gesellschaft fuer Entwicklung
und Vertrieb technischer Elemente mbH
Koeln
DE
|
Family ID: |
43805675 |
Appl. No.: |
13/006582 |
Filed: |
January 14, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
312/405 ;
49/399 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E05D 15/58 20130101;
A47F 3/043 20130101; E05Y 2900/20 20130101; E05Y 2900/31 20130101;
F25D 23/02 20130101; E06B 3/5045 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
312/405 ;
49/399 |
International
Class: |
F25D 23/02 20060101
F25D023/02; E06B 3/40 20060101 E06B003/40 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jan 18, 2010 |
DE |
10 2010 004 950.6 |
Claims
1. A refrigerated cabinet comprising a door assembly for closing a
cooling chamber, the door assembly comprising: a door supported by
pivot bearings configured to pivot about a vertical axis between a
closed position and an opened position; and rails arranged
substantially parallel to a side wall of the refrigerated cabinet,
the rails being configured to displaceably support the pivot
bearings of the door, wherein the door is displaceable in the rails
between a use position in front of the cooling chamber, in which
the door is pivotable between the opened position and the closed
position, and a parking position next to the cooling chamber, in
which the door cannot be pivoted.
2. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein the door
assembly further comprises a locking mechanism configured to lock
the pivot bearings of the door in the use position.
3. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein the door
assembly further comprises a locking mechanism configured to lock
the pivot bearings of the door in the parking position.
4. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein the
rails each include a U-shaped groove configured to guide the pivot
bearings.
5. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein the
pivot bearings of the door each include a slider which is
configured to be guided in a groove of the rails.
6. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein the door
assembly is formed as a cassette structure comprising a rectangular
frame, wherein the rails are arranged parallel to each other in an
upper and a lower part of the rectangular frame.
7. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 6, wherein the
cassette structure further includes a side wall on a side facing
toward the cooling chamber.
8. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein a width
of the door is not larger than a depth of the cooling chamber.
9. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 1, wherein the door
assembly further comprises a self-locking mechanism configured to
automatically move the door in the use position into the closed
position.
10. The refrigerated cabinet as recited in claim 9, wherein the
self-locking mechanism is configured to automatically move the door
in the use position into the closed position if the door is opened
at an angle of <30.degree..
11. A door assembly to be retrofitted to an open-fronted
refrigerated cabinet, the door assembly comprising: a door
supported by pivot bearings configured to pivot about a vertical
axis between a closed position and an opened position; and rails
arranged substantially parallel to a side wall of the open-fronted
refrigerated cabinet and configured to displaceably support the
pivot bearings, wherein the door is displaceable in the rails
between a use position in front of the cooling chamber, in which
the door is pivotable between the opened position and the closed
position, and a parking position to the side to the cooling
chamber, in which the door cannot be pivoted.
12. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, further comprising a
locking mechanism configured to lock the pivot bearings of the door
in the use position.
13. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, further comprising a
locking mechanism configured to lock the pivot bearings of the door
in the parking position.
14. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the rails
each include a U-shaped groove configured to guide the pivot
bearings.
15. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the pivot
bearings of the door each include a slider which is configured to
be guided in a groove of the rails.
16. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the door
assembly is formed as a cassette structure comprising a rectangular
frame, wherein the rails are arranged parallel to each other in an
upper and a lower part of the rectangular frame.
17. The door assembly as recited in claim 16, wherein the cassette
structure further includes a side wall on a side facing toward the
cooling chamber.
18. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein a width of
the door is not larger than a depth of the cooling chamber.
19. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the door
assembly further comprises a self-locking mechanism configured to
automatically move the door in the use position into the closed
position.
20. The door assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the
self-locking mechanism is configured to automatically move the door
in the use position into the closed position if the door is opened
at an angle of <30.degree..
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATIONS
[0001] Priority is claimed to German Patent Application No. DE 10
2010 004 950.6, filed Jan. 18, 2010. The entire disclosure of said
application is incorporated by reference herein.
FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates to a refrigerated cabinet
comprising a cooling chamber accessible from the front and to a
door assembly which can be retrofitted to such a refrigerated
cabinet.
BACKGROUND
[0003] In stores, refrigerated sales goods are stored and presented
in refrigerated sales cabinets. For removal of goods, the
refrigerated cabinet comprises an access opening arranged in a
vertical opening plane, the cooling chamber being subdivided into
separate individual bins by means of shelf boards arranged
vertically above each other. Such cooling cabinets are sufficiently
known from the state of the art, notably those of the type having
an open-fronted cooling chamber as well as those of the type
provided with pivotable doors for forming a cooling chamber which
is closed on all sides, the latter type allowing for economically
favorable storage of goods at a temperature below +5.degree. C.
[0004] In conventional refrigerated cabinets which are open during
shop hours so that customers can have unobstructed access to the
sales goods, the cooling air generated within the refrigerated
cabinet is supplied into the cooling chamber through the rear wall
of the cabinet in an undirected manner. A so-called cold-air
curtain further streams at a relatively high speed within the
access opening of the refrigerated cabinet from the upper end to
the lower end of the cabinet. This well-directed cold air flow
forms an invisible curtain between the cooled air volume within the
cooling chamber and the warmer ambient air. On the whole, such
refrigerated cabinets produce high energy losses.
[0005] Only outside of store operating hours, in order to save
costs and energy, that the open cooling chamber of such
refrigerated cabinets will be closed by corresponding night covers.
Such a night cover is normally provided as a roller blind which in
its non-use position is wound into a roll arranged in the upper
region of the refrigerated cabinet. At the end of the store hours,
the roller blind will be manually or automatically moved,
particularly shifted, into a cover position, thus closing the
cooling chamber of the refrigerated cabinet against the warmer
ambient air.
[0006] Other refrigerated cabinets provide doors for closing the
cooling chamber, which are pivotable about a vertical line for
opening the chamber. In contrast to pen-fronted refrigerated
cabinets, energy is thereby also saved during store operating
hours. However, such closed doors tend to have a negative effect on
the visibility of the sales goods in the refrigerated cabinet. The
customer must also open at least one door to be able to remove the
presented goods from within the refrigerated cabinet. This may
cause a reduction of turnover sales during peak store operating
hours.
SUMMARY
[0007] An aspect of the present invention is to provide a
refrigerated cabinet and a door assembly for the refrigerated
cabinet which can be operated in a flexible and energy-saving
manner.
[0008] In an embodiment, the present invention provides a
refrigerated cabinet which includes a door assembly for closing a
cooling chamber. The door assembly includes a door supported by
pivot bearings configured to pivot about a vertical axis between a
closed position and an opened position. Rails arranged
substantially parallel to a side wall of the refrigerated cabinet
are configured to displaceably support the pivot bearings of the
door. The door is displaceable in the rails between a use position
in front of the cooling chamber, in which the door is pivotable
between the opened position and the closed position, and a parking
position next to the cooling chamber, in which the door cannot be
pivoted.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The present invention is described in greater detail below
on the basis of embodiments and of the drawings in which:
[0010] FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a refrigerated
cabinet with retrofitted door assembly;
[0011] FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of a door assembly of a
one-part design, provided for the left-hand side of the
refrigerated cabinet shown in FIG. 1;
[0012] FIG. 3 shows an exploded view of a door assembly of a
two-part design, to be mounted between two cabinet segments of the
refrigerated cabinet shown in FIG. 1; and
[0013] FIG. 4 shows a detailed view of the bearing support of the
slider in the upper rail.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] The refrigerated cabinet of the present invention comprises
a door assembly provided with two rails arranged substantially
parallel to a side wall of the refrigerated cabinet. The door
assembly further comprises a door which by means of two pivot
bearings is supported to be pivoted about its vertical axis, the
pivot bearings being displaceably supported in the two rails.
[0015] The door can be displaced between a use position in front of
the cooling chamber, in which the door is pivotable about the
vertical axis between an opened position and a closed position, and
a parking position adjacent to the cooling chamber, in which the
door is arranged non-pivotally between the rails laterally of the
cooling chamber. Starting from the opened position, the door can be
displaced along the depth dimension of the refrigerated cabinet in
a direction parallel to the side of the cooling chamber. In the use
position, the door can be pivoted into an opened position so that
goods can be removed from within.
[0016] Since, during peak hours, the doors in their use position
tend to dampen the customers' inclination to buy, which is
undesired, the doors can during these periods be stored fully and
in a place-saving manner in a parking position to the side of the
cooling chamber, so that the refrigerated cabinet is permanently
open towards the front and the customer has unhindered access to
the goods.
[0017] In order to prevent that the door from being shifted either
accidentally or due to unauthorized tampering, for example, from
the opened state of the use position into the parking position and
vice versa, the door can, for example, be lockable both in the use
position and in the parking position.
[0018] In an embodiment of the present invention, the rails of the
door assembly can be formed as grooves. An advantageous design in
this regard is, for example, a U-shaped groove. Each rail can also
be provided with a slider displaceably arranged therein, the slider
comprising the pivot bearings of the door and preventing the door
from becoming wedged in the process of being displaced. The slider
can, for example, be supported by slide bearings or rolling
bearings.
[0019] In an embodiment of the present invention, the door assembly
can comprise a cassette structure with a C-shaped frame. The frame
can, for example, be composed of a horizontal upper frame portion
and a horizontal lower frame portion which are connected to each
other via a vertical connection portion. The vertical connection
portion can also serve as a carrier member for the holding supports
of the shelf boards and, on the side facing toward the cooling
chamber, be fastened to the rear wall of the cabinet in the areas
between the cabinet segments, wherein a given cabinet segment
corresponds to the length of a shelf board.
[0020] The frame can also comprise a side wall. Apart from its
function for spatial separation between the cabinet segments, the
side wall can also provide protection from contamination and, in
the use position of the door, is effective to prevent goods from
dropping into the cassette structure. The side wall can also
stabilize the frame.
[0021] In case of a refrigerated cabinet having an elongated design
as depicted in FIG. 1 and comprising a sole elongated cooling
chamber, it is possible, by insertion of a two-part cassette
structure, to subdivide the cooling chamber into two cabinet
segments containing one cooling partial chamber, respectively. The
dual cassette structure can be designed so that the frame carries a
door on each side of the cooling partial chamber.
[0022] To make it possible to withdraw the door fully into the
frame of the cassette structure, it can be advantageous if the
width of the door is not larger than the depth of the refrigerated
cabinet.
[0023] In an embodiment of the present invention, the door assembly
can comprise a self-locking mechanism which in the use position is
operative, for example, in a situation where the door opening angle
is smaller than 30.degree., to automatically move the door into the
closed position. If the door is in its use position in which the
door, whenever required, can be opened and then be shut again, it
may happen that the consumer, after he/she has removed the desired
goods, leaves the door open or only "slams" the door so that the
door does not entirely close. This in turn will cause an undesired
increase of energy consumption. The self-locking mechanism will,
however, force the door into the locked position.
[0024] In an embodiment of the present invention, a door assembly
can be adapted to be retrofitted to an existing open-fronted
refrigerated cabinet which can completely close an open-fronted
refrigerated cabinet with doors.
[0025] A door assembly can thus be retroactively installed on
existing conventional refrigerated cabinets, for example, open
refrigerated cabinets, wherein the door assembly will provide
energy savings and easy accessibility when required.
[0026] The embodiments of the present invention will be explained
in greater detail hereunder with reference to the accompanying
drawings.
[0027] In FIG. 1, a refrigerated cabinet 10 is shown in a
horizontal sectional view. For removal of sales goods, the
refrigerated cabinet 10 comprises an access opening arranged in a
vertical access plane. A refrigerated cabinet of this type is
suited particularly for storage of goods at a cooling temperature
of +0 to +10.degree. C. The elongate cooling chamber 15 arranged
within the refrigerated cabinet 10 is divided into individual bins
by means of shelf boards 36 arranged above each other in the
vertical direction.
[0028] By the central arrangement of a door assembly 11' on the
cabinet rear wall of refrigerated cabinet 10, the refrigerated
cabinet 10 is subdivided into two cabinet segments, wherein a
cabinet segment is sized to extend substantially along the length
of a shelf board 36. Each cabinet segment comprises a cooling
chamber 15 of its own. Between the inner side of the refrigerated
cabinet's side wall 19 and the respective cooling chamber 15, door
assemblies 11 are arranged so that the open-fronted refrigerated
cabinet 10 can be completely closed by a total of four doors 12,
12', 12'', 12''' of the door assemblies 11,11'.
[0029] Depending on the length of a refrigerated cabinet 10, also
further door assemblies 11' can be mounted to the rear wall of the
cabinet, thus making it possible to form a larger number than the
two cabinet segments of the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 1.
The shelf boards 36 should be correspondingly adapted to the length
of the cabinet segment.
[0030] The door assemblies 11 arranged on the inner side of the
refrigerated cabinet's side wall 19 comprise a one-part cassette
structure 17 on the side facing toward cooling chamber 15. The
one-part cassette structure 17 comprises a door 12 and a cassette
side wall 14 arranged between the door 12 and the cooling chamber
15.
[0031] Door assembly 11' comprises a two-part cassette structure
17'. In contrast to the above described one-part cassette structure
17, door assembly 11' comprises two doors 12 guided in
corresponding rails 16,18, the doors 12 being arranged between two
cassette side walls 14.
[0032] In the left-hand cabinet segment in FIG. 1, the door
assembly 11 is shown in the use position. The two doors 12 of the
left-hand cabinet segment are arranged in the closed position in
which the doors 12,12' can be pivoted about their vertical axes.
Each door 12 can, for example, comprise a large-surfaced glass pane
13 held in a narrow enclosing frame so that the sales goods can be
conveniently visible. In the right-hand cabinet segment, the door
12'' of the central door assembly 11' is shown in the parking
position and the other door 12''' is shown during its advancement
into the parking position.
[0033] FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of door assembly 11 formed as
a one-part cassette structure 17, as arranged on the inner sides of
the refrigerated cabinet's side walls 19 in FIG. 1. The one-part
cassette structure 17 comprises a frame 20,22,24, the latter being
designed as an assembly comprising a horizontal upper frame portion
22, a horizontal lower frame portion 24 and a vertical connection
portion 20. Together with the frame portions 22,24, the connection
portion 20 forms a C-shaped frame 20,22,24 having inner dimensions
selected to be large enough to allow the frame 20,22,24 to fully
accommodate the door 12 and the cassette side wall 14.
[0034] The connection portion 20 further comprises receiving
portions for holding bars 32 for the shelf boards 36.
[0035] On the mutually confronting inner sides of the frame
portions 22,24, rails 16,18 are arranged for sliding support of a
slider 28 guided therein. The slider 28 receives the door 12 via a
pivot bearing 26 so that the door, when in its use position, is
supported in a manner allowing also pivoting movements.
[0036] For guiding the slider 28, the rails 16,18 are of a U-shaped
configuration, while, however, other embodiments are also possible.
In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 2, the upper rail 16 is open in
the downward direction and the lower rail 18 is open in the upward
direction. In this arrangement, the slider 28 comprise slide
bearings or rolling bearings. To achieve a good guidance during
sliding movement of door 12, the sliders 28 of a door assembly 11
can be coupled to cable-type pull devices so that the movement of
sliders 28 will always be synchronized with each other.
[0037] Also FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a door assembly 11'
according to the invention. This door assembly 11', however,
comprises a two-part cassette structure 17' and can be mounted
between two cabinet segments, as shown in FIG. 1. In contrast to
the one-part cassette structure 17 of FIG. 2, the rails 16,18 on
the mutually confronting inner sides of the frame portions 22',24'
are provided in a dual configuration so that two doors 12 are
received parallel to each other in the two-part cassette structure
17'.
[0038] FIG. 4 is a detailed view of a further advantageous
embodiment of the rail. The rail 16 herein is undercut to form a
nearly C-shaped groove, thus providing for stable guidance and an
undetachable hold of slider 28. Door 12 comprises a vertical
bearing support pin 30 inserted into a vertical bore of pivot
bearing 26 and forming the rotary axis of door 12.
[0039] The present invention is not limited to embodiments
described herein; reference should be had to the appended
claims.
* * * * *